Tokyo Mew Mew: Third Helping
by The All Real Numbers Symbol
Summary: The truth is out: the Bakus are coming to Earth. The team, now including Azumi and Ringo, along with Kish, Pie, and Tart, have less than a week to find Mew Berry and prepare for the attack from the Bakus. And what's the deal with that mask Mint has?
1. Return to Earth

**Tokyo Mew Mew: Third Helping**

* * *

**Summary:** Kishu returns to Earth to warn TMM about a new threat to the planet. Now the team will have to work together with enemies and allies both old and new to stop this threat. And of course, those new power-ups will come in handy…

**Rating:** T

**Disclaimer:** I don't own TMM.

* * *

Slowly, he was getting there. Slowly, one foot in front of the other, then again, and again. It would be so much easier if he could fly, but he didn't enough energy to.

He remembered this place, remembered the streets. He made it to the corner and turned left.

The humans were out, enjoying what was left of the nice day, but they seemed shocked to see him walk by. He didn't blame them. The run-in he'd had with his enemies hadn't helped…

If only he could teleport. He could get there so much sooner. But he didn't have the energy. He put away his wishful thinking and kept walking.

He was even closer now. There it was; the pink building they called the Café Mew Mew. Headquarters of Tokyo Mew Mew. He was almost there…

He walked under the arch, and down the sidewalk that led to the front door, and pushed it open. Then he walked inside.

* * *

"Thanks for all the hard work today, girls." Keiichiro smiled at the girls.

"Don't thank us; this is what we get paid to do." Mint replied glibly and she finished wiping down one of the tables.

It was the end of another long day of work at the Café, and the girls were cleaning up the café to get it ready for the next day's customers.

"There's the day's receipts," Zakuro said as she handed a small metal box to Ryou.

There was the sound of something breaking in the kitchen, and then Pudding popped out the door. "Pudding has washed the dishes!" She announced.

"And I have the floor swept." Lettuce said, still holding the broom.

"Then I think we have everything taken care of." Ichigo said as she looked around the room, giving it one last look. "Now we can change back into our normal clothes and go home!"

Just then the door opened, and a look of shock crossed the face of everyone in the room.

Kisshu stumbled into the room, putting a hand on a table to keep himself from falling over. "Ichigo…" The word came out as a moan.

Ichigo, who had taken out her Power Pendant as the rest of the girls had when Kish arrived, clutched it tighter in her hand, prepared to transform if necessary.

But it didn't seem to be. Kisshu had staggered in, and from first appearance, he was a beaten, bloody mess.

"I came to warn you," He rasped. "They're coming to Earth...You have to stop them…have to stop them…before…before they destroy this planet…" His voice trailed off, and the green haired alien collapsed on the floor, unconscious.

For a moment, no one did anything. They simply stared in shock at the alien now lying on the floor.

Then Keiichiro walked forward, knelt down and checked the alien's breathing.

"Are we going to help him?" Mint asked.

"Well that's a stupid question." Ryou told her. "At the very least, we have to figure out what he's talking about."

* * *

Onboard a spaceship, two creatures were talking. Being as the room they were in was completely dark, only silhouettes were visible. Out the windows, the stars shone into the room, letting in the only light.

"I'm sorry my master, the Cyniclon was able to escape." The first creature, who was kneeling in front of the chair the other one was sitting in, said.

The one referred to as master asked, "So what you are telling me, Kaibutsu, is that you have failed."

Kaibutsu's head sank even lower. "Yes master."

"Never mind that. Soon we will arrive on Earth. I presume that is where the Cyniclon went?"

"When we were last able to track him that was where he was headed." Kaibutsu confirmed.

"Very well. We'll just pick him up when we get there." The 'Master' said. "I must say, stopping at Cyniclo was a waste of time, although it was where we picked up the lead to Earth. Be prepared to attack when we reach the planet." He ordered. "Earth will be ours."

"Yes, Master." Kaibutsu said, then hurried out of the room.

"Soon, the planet will fall to the power of the Baku!"

* * *

In one of the back rooms of the Café Mew Mew, Keiichiro was running a scan on Kisshu, who was still unconscious.

"You have a medical area back here too?" Lettuce asked.

"Yep." Ryou replied.

"Wow." Ichigo remarked sarcastically. "All this place is missing is an elevator."

"What makes you think we don't have one?" Ryou asked.

Ichigo gave him an open-mouthed stare, but before she could say anything, Zakuro interrupted.

"Have you learned anything yet, Keiichiro?" She asked.

"Not yet." Keiichiro replied as he typed away at the computer. "He had nasty run in with something, though."

"Do you think it could be the thing he was trying to warn us about?" Mint asked.

"It could be." Keiichiro told her. "But we don't know what he was trying to warn us about."

"They're called the Baku."

The weary voice from the bed garnered everyone's attention, and now everyone was looking at Kisshu.

"They're called the Baku, and they want to take over Earth…"

"Why do they want to take over Earth?" Ryou quickly asked.

There was no answer.

"Kisshu!" Ryou grabbed the alien by the shoulders; only to find that he had already sank away, back into unconsciousness.

"The Baku?" Mint repeated.

"I don't know." Ryou told her. "You girls should go home; Keiichiro and I will research this and hopefully know more tomorrow."

* * *

Back in the computer room behind the main room of the café, Keiichiro sat at the main counsel. The room was dark except for the light from the computer screens, and the only sound was the sound of typing as Keiichiro worked.

The door opened, and Ryou entered. "Have you found anything?" He asked.

"I'm preparing to scan…" Keiichiro typed in a command and hit the enter key. "Now. This scan should tell us if there's anything out in space that we need be aware of." He finished, then asked, "How's Kisshu?"

"Still out cold." Ryou replied indifferently as he sat down in the other chair.

Before Keiichiro could reply, the computer beeped. "My word…" His voice trailed off as he saw what was on the screen.

Ryou straightened up and peered at the computer screen. Visible on the radar screen was a huge spaceship, slowly approaching Earth.

Keiichiro typed a few more commands into the computer, the gave Ryou a worried look. "That thing is full of alien invaders, and it's heading towards Earth."

Staring at the screen, Ryou muttered, "We're gonna need some help for this one."

* * *

**T.A.R.N.S.:** So many things to mention! This is the conglomeration of several ideas I've had for a Tokyo Mew Mew story, and now I get to start it. Eventually, there will be images that match this story and they'll all be posted on my blog, soon as I can get 'em there. Some of em are actually done now, and waiting to go. I did use the 4kids dub name for the aliens, unfortunatly, but I really can't just call them 'the aliens' for the entire fic. And Kaibutsu is supposed to mean 'monster.'

**Nyoshi:** Anyways...

**T.A.R.N.S.:** Let's see if I can pull myself out of my slump with everything else. Still, please review and let us know what you thought, and we'll see you next time!


	2. Meet Hime Azumi

**Tokyo Mew Mew: Third Helping**

**Chapter 2**

* * *

Even though the night was dark, the streetlights cast plenty of light, and people were still out and about, even though it was well after ten o'clock.

Suddenly the sound of a monster's roar was heard. People began fleeing in every direction, screaming as they ran.

The scaly green dinosaur-like monster stomped down the road, knocking over things at random and generally attacking the city.

During the day, Tokyo Mew Mew would have been dispatched to stop the monster. But it was night, and most of the members of TMM were at home in their beds.

"Rising Dragon Lightning Bolt!"

The monster reeled back as the first attack struck it, then roared at the creature responsible for interrupting its fun.

At first glance, one could almost mistake the girl for Mew Ichigo, but a closer inspection revealed this to a catgirl of a different kind.

Instead of pink, she was wearing a black dress. In fact, the only things pink about her were the color of her eyes and the scarf she was wearing. She had no Power Pendant, no garter, and no bell on her tail.

The monster lunged forward, breaking off a piece of an office building, which was fortunately empty, and threw it at the black catgirl.

She dodged the piece of the building, and threw another attack at the monster.

"Super Special Ultra Starmain!"

The monster reeled, then came roaring back towards the girl.

"Oooh, you're harder than most," The girl muttered. "But you won't escape my final attack. Total Destruction Psycho Fireworks!"

The final attack sent the defeated monster reeling, and it collapsed to the ground, defeated.

"Guess that takes care of you." The girls muttered as she brushed the dust off her gloves.

Then suddenly she stopped and listened. "I know I heard something…" Her cat ears twitched as she heard the noise again.

"Whoever's there, you'd better come out." She warned as she turned around and surveyed the area.

A moment later blond haired teenager stepped into view.

Her pink eyes narrowed. "Who are you?" She demanded.

"I'm Ryou." The boy replied. "Ryou Shirogane. Might I presume that you are Hime Azumi?"

"I am." Azumi replied. "But why does it matter?"

"It matters for a lot of reasons." Ryou told her. "First and foremost of which is the fact that there is a large spaceship approaching Earth, and aboard that spaceship is a race of sentient aliens who are going to try and take over this planet. I remember hearing the reports about you before Tokyo Mew Mew came along. You still have the power to become Hime Azumi, and this planet needs your help now more than ever. The question is, will you help?"

It only took Azumi a moment to think it over. "I will."

Ryou nodded. "Good. Come to the Café Mew Mew tomorrow, and we'll fill you in on what we know."

* * *

Back aboard the spaceship, Kaibutsu was in another meeting with his 'master.'

"Have you prepared an advance team to go ahead to Earth?" The 'master' asked.

"Yes," Kaibutsu replied.

"Very good. Now pay attention!"

Kaibutsu turned to see a large map of Earth fill the screen behind his head. One section of the map had a box around it.

"This island here is called 'Japan' by the people who live on it. You are going here for two reasons: 1) this where most of the Mew Aqua on the planet is found, and 2) when you were last able to track the Cyniclon, this island was where he was headed. Your job will be to find that Cyniclon. If find any Mew Aqua while looking, then fine, if not, it will be found after we take control of the planet, but your first priority is to find that Cyniclon. I cannot have him ruin my plans by telling the humans that we are coming."

"They are just humans, master, what can they do?" Kaibutsu asked.

"I'm glad you asked." His master told him. "Most humans will not be able to resist us, but there are those who will try. Most normal humans refer to them as 'superheroes.' Specifically take a look at these superheroes that will be in Tokyo when you get there."

The picture on the screen changed to one that showed five girls, each wearing a different color: pink, blue, green, yellow, and purple. "These heroes are known as 'Tokyo Mew Mew.'" The master told him. "And they will undoubtedly try to stand in your way. Do not let them stop you."

"Yes master." Kaibutsu bowed once more, and then turned and headed for the door.

* * *

Ichigo raced up the path that lead to the door of the café, pushed it open and ran inside.

Lettuce met her in the main dining room of the cafe. "I'm glad you're here." The porpoise- girl told her. "Ryou wants to see us right away. C'mon." She turned and led the way to the computer room in the back of the café.

Ichigo followed the green-haired girl into the room, where the other members of Tokyo Mew Mew where standing around a large computer screen.

"Last night after you girls left, we scanned outer space for anything out of the ordinary." Keiichiro told them. "We found this."

He pressed a button, and a picture of the Baku's ship filled the screen.

"Woah…" Mint breathed.

Lettuce gasped.

"This one almost guarantees to be stronger anything we've fought before." Ryou told them. "It won't get to Earth for several days, so we have some time to prepare."

"How much is 'some time?'" Mint asked.

"I can't be exact." Keiichiro said as he typed another command into the computer. "I give it about a week, give or take of couple of days."

"So what are we going to do about it?" Ichigo asked.

Instead of answering, Ryou turned and walked towards the door. "Follow me."

As they walked down the hall towards the changing rooms, Ryou told them, "We are recruiting more help for the fight against the Bakus." He said. "If their spaceship is any indication, we'll need all the help we can get."

Just then the door to the changing room opened and another girl stepped out. She had black hair, golden brown eyes, and was wearing a Café Mew Mew waitress outfit, only this one was colored black, with white accents and a gray bow. She finished tying the sash of the outfit and turned to the group.

"Girl, this is Hime Azumi." Ryou said by way of introduction. "She's our first recruit in for the upcoming battle."

There was a momentary pause, then Pudding bounced up. "Pudding is pleased to meet you!" She exclaimed as she shook Azumi's hand.

Mint crossed her arms over her chest and asked, "So do we call you Hime or do we call you Azumi?"

"Azumi." The black-haired girl told her.

Lettuce gave the girl a half-bow. "I am glad to meet you, Azumi."

Ichigo turned to Ryou. "First recruit?" She asked.

"Yes." Ryou nodded. "We also have to find Berry and Ringo."

"Berry and Ringo?" Ichigo repeated.

"Like I said, we're gonna need all the help we can get." Ryou replied. "Only problem is that we can't find either of 'em."

"Berry is in England with her father." Zakuro finally spoke up. "She's been there for the last couple of months."

"Do you know…?" Ryou began, but Zakuro shook her head.

"All I know is that she's in England. I don't know where she's at or how to contact her."

"I might be able to get a hold of Ringo." Ichigo said. "But it might take awhile."

Ryou crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, you better get to it. We've only got a week."

"Thanks." Ichigo muttered sarcastically.

"Um, excuse me," Lettuce began nervously. "Shouldn't we be getting to work?"

"Yep. Meanwhile, I''ll see if I can find Berry. Keiichiro will meet you in the kitchen." Ryou said as he walked away.

The girls turned and headed towards the dining room of the café, ready to open the place for the day.

"Well, I wonder how this new job is going to fit in my nighttime patrol." Azumi muttered as she followed the other girls.

* * *

The plain was wide, flat and empty. Trees could be seen on the horizon, but the former farmer's field was flat and deserted. No houses were nearby for miles.

In the middle of the field, a space ship floated down and landed.

The first person off the ship was the Baku known as Kaibutsu.

"We must find the Cyniclon," He told the group of soldiers who'd come with him. "That is our first priority."

"Now," He continued. "Let's begin our search."

* * *

**T.A.R.N.S.:** I didn't expect to have this chapter completed or up this soon, but I had alot of time on my hands, so I used it.

**Nyoshi:** And now we've picked the first recruit, Hime Azumi.

**T.A.R.N.S.:** Yes. Some of you may have read my other story titled 'Hime Azumi', but I decided not to tie it into this one. In this story, Azumi won't be like a ditz, but she won't be as dark as I made her in _Hime Azumi_.

**Nyoshi:** Not that it really matters, 'cause you said these two weren't tied together anyways.

**T.A.R.N.S.:** Good point. Anyway, thanks to both our reviewers from last time, and once again, we're asking everyone to please review!

**Nyoshi:** It's what keeps us going!

**T.A.R.N.S.:** So please review, and we'll see you next time!


	3. Mew Minto's Mask

**Tokyo Mew Mew: Third Helping**

**Chapter 3**

* * *

He felt like he was floating…somewhere between awake and asleep.

The pain was what brought him back down to Earth.

He unsuccessfully tried to bite back the cry of pain that came to his lips as he felt something pressed against the deep cut on his chest.

"I'm sorry. Don't worry I'll be done soon."

That voice. He knew that voice. He felt something wrap around his chest several times, then felt himself be laid back down on the bed.

"There. Finished."

Kisshu wearily opened his eyes to see Keiichiro standing above him. "I know you. You work with Tokyo Mew Mew."

Keiichiro nodded. "I am Keiichiro Akasaka. It is good to see you are finally awake."

Kish's eyes widen as he suddenly remembered what he had come to Earth about. "The Baku! Did you…"

"Relax. You told us." Keiichiro assured him. "We scanned outer space and found their ship; now we are preparing to stop them." With that he turned and headed for the door. "If you are still feeling better, I will have food sent up later."

"Arigato." Kish murmured as he rolled over and closed his eyes.

* * *

Usually Mint took her limousine to café, but today she decided to walk. The day was nice, and she decided to enjoy it.

As she was walking down the street, she heard screams up ahead, and then people came racing back in the direction she had come.

"Huh?" Mint looked up to see several flying dinosaur like monsters ahead of her.

She quickly looked around. There were still a few people on the street; she couldn't transform here. Then she noticed a nearby alley.

"Oh," She moaned at the thought of having to go down that alley. But the monsters were getting closer, so she turned and ran down it anyway, shouting as she ran, "Mew Mew Minto, Metamorphosis!"

A moment later Mew Mint came flying out of the alley.

"Minto Arrow!" A small, folded up bow with a heart shaped arrowhead appeared in her hand.

"Ribbon…Minto Echo!" With that, she shot several arrows off at the monsters.

The dragon-like monsters roared as the arrows hit them, then turned and noticed Mint. Now angry, they turned and swooped towards her.

One of them used a good hit from its tail to send Mint flying. She hit the ground hard, then stood up and shot several more arrows off.

This time the monsters dodged them, and tried to grab Mint in their jaws.

_This isn't going to work,_ The Lorikeet thought. _They're too strong for me._

She fairly screamed and jumped back as what looked like a gold glowing ball appeared in the air. Then she had to jump forward again as one of the monsters swiped at her with its tail. This action, however, sent her flying straight into the gold ball of energy.

To her surprise, when she hit the ground, nothing had happened to her, but when she looked down she noticed she was holding a gold mask in her hand.

It looked like it was made of two semicircles. At the top, in the middle of the semicircles, was a round-cut dark blue gem. On either end of the mask, at the pointed tips, were three tiny, dark blue feathers. Raised gold bumps on the mask added texture to it.

She didn't know what to do with it – the roar from one of the monsters behind her warned her she was going to be attacked again- but Mint had the strangest feeling that she had to put it on…

_It's just a silly mask. It can't hurt me._

She held it up to her face, then slowly put it on…

Though it had no strings, the mask stayed on after she put it on. The semicircles pointed down, but were short enough that they stopped just at the base of her nose. And when she put it on, something extraordinary happened….

Her bird wings vanished, along with her tail, and a pair of white, angel-like wings almost seemed to burst out of her back. After that, she was surrounded by a white glow, which then transformed into her new outfit.

She was wearing a white dress not unlike one she could have danced ballet in. It was an off-the-shoulder dress, with two dark blue spaghetti straps holding it on her shoulders. The top was edged in dark blue, as were the wrists of the gown, as it the new outfit had no gloves. The bodice was white, along with the ruffled skirt that hung down around Mint's knees. Just above the hem of the skirt was a line of sparkly blue trim that went all the way around the skirt. Besides that, she was wearing white tights and dark blue ballet slippers.

"Whoa." Mint muttered as she took her new outfit in. The monster roared again, flying towards her at full speed.

Mint elegantly tossed her hands up, shouting as she did, "Minto Arrow!" The weapon formed again, but this time with a gold arrow instead of a pink one.

She caught it and opened her white wings full, then spun around; never losing her wings as she did, spinning her skirt out full as she did, and then she shot off an arrow.\

"Ribbon…Minto Echo!"

The gold arrowhead went flying, forming into three separate arrows as it did, and hit the monsters dead on, defeating them.

Mint was speechless for a moment, then she reached up and pulled the mask off her face. In an instant she had de-transformed back to usual blue outfit.

"Cool," She smiled as she looked at the mask. "I'm gonna hang on to this. And since I've already transformed…" She flew up into the air, and started heading for Café Mew Mew.

* * *

Ichigo had been working on straightening up some last minute things before the Café opened when she noticed Ryou waving her over.

So she hurried over to see what was going on.

"Kish is finally awake." Ryou told her. "In the kitchen is tray of food I want you to get and take upstairs to him."

"I thought he was downstairs." Ichigo pointed out.

"We moved him upstairs last night after you girls left." Ryou said. "He's in the second room on your left after you go upstairs. Now get the food and take it upstairs." Before Ichigo had a chance to complain, Ryou had walked away.

"Humph." Ichigo muttered to herself, then she turned and headed for the kitchen.

The tray was sitting on the counter in plain sight. _The last thing I want to do is take this upstairs, and to Kisshu no less._ The catgirl thought as she picked up the tray. Then she saw Azumi, who was standing by the sink washing dishes.

"Hey Azumi!" Ichigo called.

"Hey Ichigo." Azumi replied with out turning around.

"I thought Lettuce was washing the dishes." Ichigo told her.

"She was, but she needed a break." Azumi explained. "So now I'm washing the dishes."

"Hey, I was wondering…" Ichigo began. "Would you do me a favor?"

"What do you want?" Azumi asked.

"I just need you to take this tray upstairs to Kish." Ichigo told her.

"Okay." Azumi, who had been briefed on the situation by Keiichiro and Ryou when arrived that morning, responded. "But the thing is, if I go upstairs, you'll have to finish the dishes. Keiichiro apparently used a bunch of 'em last night to pre-cook some of the food for today, and these really need to get done before the café opens."

"Ok…" The word died on Ichigo's lips when she saw the humongous stack of dishes. "What did he do, use every dish in the café?!"

"I dunno." Azumi said as she set another dish in the drying rack.

Ichigo sighed. "I'll just take the food upstairs.

XXX

Ichigo pushed open the door and entered the room, still holding the tray of food.

"Maid service too?" Kish asked. He had propped himself up in bed, and though still paler than normal, he had a cheeky grin plastered on his face and looked as though he'd have a lot of fun giving Ichigo a hard time.

Ichigo frowned, then noticed something. Even though part of his chest was bandaged up, she could see he still had the scar from his run-in with the Blue Knight.

Kisshu noticed she was looking at him, and with a fanged grin asked, "I look pretty good with out my shirt on, don't you think, Koneko-chan?"

The response was almost second nature now. "KISSHU you PERVERT!!"

She stomped over to bed, set the tray down on his lap and stomped back out the door. "Eat your food!"

-

Ichigo stomped back down the stairs until she reached the main floor, where everyone seemed to be pointedly ignoring what she'd screamed.

Everyone except Azumi, who poked her head out of the kitchen to see what was going on.

Ichigo stopped, pointed a finger in Azumi's face, and told her, "Next time, _you_ will take the tray upstairs. _I'll_ wash the dishes." With that, the pink catgirl stomped away.

* * *

Kaibutsu walked through the streets of the city the humans called 'Tokyo.' He was one of the advance Bakus, meaning he was more intelligent than an average soldier, and he also had limited shape shifting powers.

Limited or not, they still had uses, and he was using them to walk through the streets unchallenged, disguised as just another human.

Then he saw it. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed a rather feminine pink building, the sign in front of it proclaiming it to be 'Café Mew Mew.'

He stood there for a moment, trying to decide what to do now. A moment later a teenage girl walked by, pushed open the door and entered the building. Kaibutsu decided to follow suite.

He watched as people sat down at the tables, and were served by the girls in the matching dresses.

_I wonder if they are the Tokyo Mew Mew_. He thought. A moment later he turned and quietly slipped back out the door. It would be worth sending a few soldiers down to find out. At the very least, even if it wasn't the heroes hide out, the monsters would still draw them out.

* * *

**T.A.R.N.S:** I know, it's way to early for me to be updating again, and believe me when I say that the speedy updates are _going_ to stop, but I just received volume four of the manga today, and I decided to celebrate.

**Kisshu:** So she celebrated by posting another chapter.

**Pie:** And here we can see that Mint has gained new powers, and also we have the first run-in with the Baku.

**T.A.R.N.S.:** In case you're wondering, Nyoshi took the day off and went to the beach. For temporary replacements he hired the Three Stooges here.

**Taruto:** Hey, don't call us that.

**T.A.R.N.S.:** I read volume four and apparently Azumi does have a bell on her tail. But I think for my story, when she's in her normal catgirl outfit, she won't have one. I don't know why every girl who has a Cat tail in the manga has to have a bell on it. Anywa, the manga was good except for the IXMasaya parts. That really burns me, a Kichigo fan. But I'll survive.

**Kish:** Only because we have too!

**T.A.R.N.S:** Quiet Kish. You're ruinin' my moment.

**Pie:** Anywways, please review and tell The All Real numbers Symbol what you thought. And she also wants me to remind you again that the speedy updates will stop.

**T.A.R.N.S.:** Yes, please review and we'll see you next time!


	4. The First Battle

**Tokyo Mew Mew: Third Helping**

**Chapter 4**

* * *

"I need a cheesecake and a milkshake for table four." Lettuce told Keiichiro as she ducked into the kitchen.

"Coming right up." He replied with a smile. A couple of moments later, Lettuce left the kitchen, tray laden with goodies in hand.

It was yet another busy afternoon at the Café. The girls, including Azumi but excluding Zakuro, who was running the register, raced around, taking order and delivering food.

At precisely three o'clock Mint plopped down in one of the available tables table and calmly informed Azumi, "Bring me a cup of tea."

Azumi just stared at her. "Wait a minute, I though you _worked_ here."

"I do, but I always take a break in the afternoon for my tea." Mint told her. "Now bring me some tea!"

Azumi rolled her eyes and walked towards the kitchen.

* * *

Back in the changing room, which was one of the few quiet places in the Café, Ichigo was scrolling through the numbers in her cellphone.

"I could have sworn I put Ringo's phone number in here." She muttered to herself as she scrolled through the numbers.

"There it is!" She exclaimed a moment later. "I knew I put it in there!" She press the 'call' button, put the phone to her ear, and waited, but was disappointed a moment later when it went to voice mail.

Ichigo sighed, then left a message. "Hi Ringo, it's me, Ichigo. Look, a problem has come up that we could really use your help on, so if you can, please come to the Café Mew Mew," Ichigo rattled off the address of the café, said goodbye, and hung up the phone.

"I hope she comes." Ichigo said as she hung up the phone and headed back to the dining room.

* * *

Frustrated, Ryou stared at the computer screen.

_There is no way Mew Berry could have vanished off the face of the earth,_ he thought to himself. _But all my searches keep coming up dry. How are we going to find her in time?_

He silently stared at the computer screen for a few more moment, then one single word came to mind.

Tasuku.

"Of course." _Why didn't I think of that sooner? If there's one person on this planet who knows how to reach her, it'll be her boyfriend._

Ryou leaned forward and began typing again. "Tasuku shouldn't be so hard to find."

* * *

Ichigo walked back into the dining room as Ryou came out of the computer room.

"I managed to call Ringo and left a message for her." Ichigo told the others, who had gathered when they saw Ryou and Ichigo.

"And I think that I know how to find Berry." Ryou announced.

Just then, something landed on the roof, shaking the café. A moment later, a Baku burst in through the wall, sending the restaurant patrons running.

"What are those things?" Ichigo asked.

"I don't know," Mint told her. "But I fought some of them earlier."

"Well ladies, we should probably get started." Zakuro told them.

"Mew Mew Ichigo, Metamorphosis!"

"Mew Mew Mint, Metamorphosis!"

"Mew Mew Lettuce, Metamorphosis!"

"Mew Mew Pudding, Metamorphosis!"

"Mew Mew Zakuro, Metamorphosis!"

"Azumi, Metamorphose!"

A moment later, the six half-human hybrids were standing there.

"Alright ladies," Ichigo grinned. "Let's go! For the future of the earth, we serve!"

And with that, the girls took off and started fighting the Baku.

"Ribbon…Strawberry Surprise!"

The blast hit one of the Baku, sending him flying back, but not defeating him.

_Crud_, Ichigo thought. _These guys are tougher than they look._

"Rising Dragon Lightning Bolt!" Azumi attack was a bit more effective, but she had to attack the monster twice before she defeated the one she was fighting.

"Ribbon…Pudding Ring Inferno!"

"Ribbon…Zakuro Spear!"

The combined attacks from Zakuro and Pudding stopped the monster they were fighting twice as fast.

"Combining our powers seems to work." Zakuro said.

Lettuce narrowly missed getting hit as one of the monsters swung its tail at her.

"We don't have time for that." Mint muttered as she pulled out the mask she'd gotten that morning.

_This thing really helps me fight these new monsters. But what am I going to say to the other girls?_ Mint finally shrugged and put it on. A moment later, she was standing there in her new white outfit.

The other girls seemed shocked. "Mint?" Ichigo asked.

"How did she do that?" Lettuce wanted to know. Zakuro just stared.

"Pudding thinks that Mint-oneesama looks pretty." Pudding piped up.

Mint summoned her weapon and prepared to attack. "Ribbon…Minto attack!"

_How odd. Why did I say that? Oh well. I suppose a new attack deserves a new name._

The attack defeated the monster on the first strike.

"Umm…why are you guys standing around?" Azumi asked. "We have work to do!"

With that, they all got back to work, and a short time later, the monsters were defeated.

Mew Ichigo looked around. Other than the one that had managed to get away, all the monsters were defeated.

"These must be the Baku that Kish mentioned." Zakuro stated.

"Yeah, and another thing," Ichigo turned around and faced Mew Mint. "How'd you do that?"

Mint reached up and pulled the mask off. In a flash of light, she was back to her normal blue Mew dress.

"I did it with this." Mint said as she extended the mask towards Ichigo.

"Where'd you get that?" Lettuce wondered.

"Believe it or not, I found today while I was walking towards the café." Mint admitted.

"I'm going to talk to Shirogane about this." Ichigo turned around and nearly ran into Ryou himself.

"Talk to me about what?" He asked.

"This," Ichigo swiped the mask out of Mint's hand and handed it to him.

"Hey, give that back!" Mint demanded.

"What's the deal with this?" Ryou asked. "It's just a mask."

"Oh yeah? Watch what happens when Mint puts it on." Ichigo took the mask and gave it back to Mint.

Mint sighed and put the mask on. A moment later, the white wings burst out of her back, and she was standing there in her white outfit.

Ryou seemed shocked. "I'd like to run a few tests on that mask." He told Mint.

Mint sighed and pulled the mask off her face. "Fine. But you better give it back when you're done."

"Of course." Keiichiro said as Ryou handed the mask to him.

Ichigo sighed as she looked around the ruined café. "In the meantime, we'd better get to work."

* * *

Back at the Baku's spaceship, the one monster that managed to escape was reporting what had happened to Kaibutsu.

"Then the girls who work at that Café Mew Mew are indeed the same girls who are Tokyo Mew Mew." Kaibutsu said, more to himself than to the other Baku.

"Excellent."

* * *

**The** next day was Saturday, which meant that the girls spent nearly all day at the Café instead of going to school.

When Ichigo got to the Café, she was surprised to see Kisshu, in the male water's uniform, working in the Café.

She turned to Zakuro. "What happened?"

"Kisshu felt better, so to keep him from going anywhere, Ryou told him he could work at the Café." Zakuro stated.

"You're kidding, right? Tell me you're kidding." Ichigo responded.

"Well I would, but that would be a lie." Zakuro said, without looking up from where she was sweeping up broken glass. "Ryou got everything fixed, so we can open the Café and get to work."

_I'm gonna have to work with … Kish?_

Ichigo sighed. It was gonna be a long day.

-

Ichigo peered out of the changing room, checking up and down the hall, before running out of the room and darting into the kitchen.

"Hello, Ichigo-san." Keiichiro said, then, realizing something was up. "What's wrong?"

"Kish is working here now?" Ichigo fairly exploded. "I can't work in the same building as Kish, much less the same room. I'd bet my Strawberry Bell he came back for more than just to warn us about the Baku!"

Sensing that the situation needed to be resolved quickly, Keiichiro made a suggestion. "Why don't you work in the kitchen? We need someone to wash the dishes."

"Yes, please!" Ichigo raced over to the sink.

The had been quietly working for few minutes when the door to the kitchen opened and Kish walked in, holding a tray of dirty dishes.

"Shirogane told me to take these to the kitchen." He said, and then noticed something. Fanged grin firmly in place, he just couldn't resist. "Hello, Koneko-chan."

Ichigo felt like screaming. _Ryou made Kish the busboy!? I'm gonna die!_

* * *

Not far from the Café, a bus was pulling up to its regular stop. The doors opened, and young girl got off.

She was wearing a hooded shirt with an apple motif on the front, a shirt, and a Mew Aqua pendant. She was also holding a suitcase.

"Next stop, Café Mew Mew."

* * *

"I'm bored. Are we there yet?"

"No."

Clutching the steering apparatus of the ship so hard his knuckles were turning white, well, whiter than usual, Pie attempted to resist the urge to strangle Tart.

"It is taking us longer to get to Earth because we must make sure that the Baku do not detect us." Pie explained for what seemed to him like the millionth time.

_Kisshu, you are the only alien I know stupid enough to pull a stunt like this. Forget strangling Tart. When we get to Earth, I'm gonna strangle _you_._

It had been only a short while ago when the aliens stopped on the Cyniclon's planet. They had taken all the Mew Aqua that was helping heal their planet, but when the Bakus found nothing else worth taking on Cyniclo, they turned their attention to the planet where the Mew Aqua had come from.

Earth.

The Grand Council had agreed that there was no need to interfere. The humans had proven time and again that they could take care of themselves, Tokyo Mew Mew being one example.

Kish had apparently missed that meeting. When Tart had gone looking for Kish a couple of days after the meeting, the only thing he found was a note sitting on the bed, which read, '_Going back to Earth. Have to warn the humans, and besides, I want to see my Koneko-Chan again_."

Shortly after this discovery, Pie and Tart had been dispatched to find Kish.

_It's too late for that_, Pie thought as he steered the ship. _At this rate, we'll be helping the humans battle the Baku_. Oh well. Maybe they could get some more Mew Aqua for their planet.

With that thought in mind, Pie checked the instrument panel on the ship, adjusted his steering, and continued towards the blue and green planet known as Earth.

* * *

**T.A.R.N.S:** Weee! Lots of plot setup, and the first battle, so many other things that will be explained further later on.

**Nyoshi:** Yeah fourth chapter!

**T.A.R.N.S:** Anyway, please review and tell us what you thought.


	5. Enter Pie and Tart

**Tokyo Mew Mew: Third Helping**

**Chapter 5**

* * *

Ichigo stayed in the kitchen and kept washing dishes. Eventually, Keiichiro left the kitchen and went back to the computer room.

The rest of the girls –along with Kish- kept working the café.

It was almost three o'clock when Keiichiro called a meeting.

Everyone gathered in the computer room, even Kish, who hung around the back of the room and stayed quiet.

"We finished the tests on Mint's mask." Ryou said as he handed the mask back to the lorikeet-girl.

"It is a power-up." Keiichiro told them. "Whether or not everyone will get one, we don't know yet. It seems to be something of a physical representation of Mint's power."

"We'll keep you informed of any updates." Ryou said as he turned and headed for the door.

"Hey, where are you going?" Ichigo wanted to know.

"I'm going to see Tasuku." Ryou replied. "I think he can help me find Mew Berry."

* * *

Ryou had gone to Tasuku's house, only to find that he wasn't there. His mother, however, was home today, and had told Ryou where to find him.

The school carwash was going well. Groups of kids were working on washing various cars. Ryou stopped across the street, and watched for a moment, then crossed the street and began wandering his way through the groups of kids.

Tasuku was working on the last car in the row. He wiped down the car door with his sponge, than stood up, rolled backwards, and stuck the sponge back in the bucket of soapy water.

Ryou shook his head. Tasuku was still wearing those rollerblades.

"Tasuku?"

"I'm almost done," He replied without thinking, then looked up and saw who was talking.

"Ryou? Wow, it's been a long time."

"It has." Ryou said shortly. "Tasuku, do you know where I can reach Berry?"

Tasuku looked confused. "Well, yes, but why do you need to contact her? I thought that after what happened-"

"I know what happened," Ryou cut in. "And I don't have time to worry about whether or not Berry will come back. Tasuku, this planet is about to be invaded by a group of aliens known as the Baku, and we need Berry's help to stop them."

There was a momentary pause, then Tasuku nodded. "Come with me. I have the address for where she's staying in England back at my house. Besides, I could use a break."

-

Tasuku skated down the sidewalk that led towards his house, Ryou following a few feet behind. The house was just up ahead.

"Wait here, I'll go get the address." Tasuku said as he skated up to the house, climbed the stairs to the front door, and vanished inside.

Ryou briefly wondered how Tasuku was able to run up the stairs while wearing his rollerblades, but there was no time, for Tasuku was back a moment later with a sheet of paper in his hand.

"Here's the address." He said as she handed the paper to Ryou. "If you can get her to come back, let me know, okay?"

"I will." Ryou said as he turned and began walking away.

* * *

Entering Earth's atmosphere had been difficult, but he'd gotten the ship through. Once past the stratosphere, Pie had turned on the cloaking device for the ship. No need to scare the humans half to death with a UFO sighting.

As they flew over Tokyo, looking for a place to land, Tart suddenly shouted, "Look!"

Wincing from the close proximity of Tart's shout to his ear, Pie turned and looked out the window. In a deserted field outside Tokyo, a Baku ship was visible.

"Oh no." Pie muttered. The Bakus were already here.

* * *

The café door opened, and Ichigo stepped over to take care of the next customer. "Welcome to the Café Mew Mew." She began. "May I take-" Then she realized who was standing there.

"RINGO!!" She nearly dropped her tray as she went to give her friend a hug.

"Ichigo," Ringo smiled as she hugged her friend in return. "I'm glad to see you. I got your page last night. My brother and I were already in Tokyo, so I just came on over."

"This is so great!" Ichigo said. "C'mon, let's go talk to Keiichiro. He can fill you in on the details."

Lettuce watched as the two of them walked away, headed for the kitchen. "Now all we need to do is find Mew Berry, and then we can stop the Bakus." She said.

Zakuro, who was working the register, didn't reply.

* * *

Ringo finished tying the bow on the back of her waitress dress, then stepped out of the changing room. Her uniform was yellow, with brown accents and the typical white apron and sash. She turned and headed down the hallway, then quietly ducked into the kitchen, where Ichigo was picking up an order.

"I'm ready to start." Ringo told her.

"Okay," Ichigo began, then stopped. "Ringo, why aren't you wearing the headpiece that matches the uniform?" Instead of the headpiece, Ringo was still wearing her red ribbon in her hair.

"I don't wanna take off my ribbon." Ringo told her. The girl then asked, "Um, Ichigo? About the green-haired alien out there…"

"Kish?"

"Yeah. Why is he working here? I thought he was the enemy."

"Remember when Keiichiro said that we were warned the Bakus were coming?" Ichigo asked. "Well, Kish was the one who warned us. He's not the enemy anymore."

"Oh, okay." Ringo said. "Well, I guess I'd better get to work."

* * *

It had taken awhile, but Pie had finally found a deserted spot a good distance from both the Baku ship and the city to set the ship down at.

"So now what?" Tart asked him. "How are we going to find Kish now?"

"Logic, Tart." The older alien replied coldly. "We're going to try and think what would Kish do? And I think we both know the answer to that question. Now come on." Pie unbuckled his seatbelt and stood up.

"We're going to pay a visit to the Café Mew Mew."

* * *

Once again disguised as a human, Kaibutsu walked up the path that led to the front door of the café. In his hand he clutched a few yen he'd taken from some poor unfortunate soul, who'd been unwillingly voluteered to provide a lunch for the Baku soldiers.

According to the spies he'd sent flying over the city, the humans had managed to repair this place in time to open. Now it was time for more spying. How many Mews were there? There had been a new black one he hadn't heard of before. Were the Mews able to work together well? It would go better for the Bakus if they couldn't.

With these thoughts in mind, Kaibutsu pulled open the door and entered the building.

Standing in front of a podiun was a green haired girl.

"One in your party?" She asked.

Kaibutsu nodded, and followed her to a table. Once there, he was given a menu. As he opened it and pretended to study it, he glanced around the cafe. There were the six girls, the Mews. They were the ones in the identical uniforms. His eyes widened as he saw the seventh one, a brown haired girl in a yellow uniform.

Where are they getting all these Mews from? There'd only been five in the picture he'd seen. Then again, the new girl might not ba a Mew. He observed an older man with dark hair pulled into a ponytail enter the kitchen. That one was probably the cook.

There was clatter as a tray loaded with dishes was set down two tables away. Kaibutsu lowered the menu slightly so he could look over it, and nearly let out a cry of surprise.

_The Cyniclon!!_ The Cyniclon was here. Kaibutsu watched as he cleared the used dishes off the table. Same green hair tied up with the red bands, yellow eyes. It was the same one who'd followed them, alright.

The girl in the black uniform was walking towardds his table now. The Cyniclon moved away, taking the tray with him.

"Are you ready to order?" The girl asked.

"I'm sorry." Kaibutsu stood up, the yen he'd taken forgotten. "I have a prior engagement."

"Weird." Azumi muttered as she watched him walk out the door. Then she shrugged and turned her attention to another table.

Back at the entrance to the café, Lettuce watched as Kaibutsu walked back out.

"That's the customer I seated I few minutes ago." She noted. Zakuro, who was running the register, didn't respond, so Lettuce made no further comment.

When the door opened a few minutes later, both of them looked up, expecting to see more customers. But that wasn't what they saw.

Lettuce gasped. "Pie, Tartuo?"

* * *

**T.A.R.N.S.:** Kind of a cliffhanger ending going on there. And now, to answer Safaia Bara's question, yes, Pudding will be happy to see Tart again. (I expect that will be an interesting part to write.) However, I have a problem. This problem is who should Lettuce be paired up with. (I got a couple of subtle hints in the reviews.)

I can write either Lettuce/Ryou or Lettuce/Pie, so I'm gonna let the reviewers decide this. When you review, just let me know which guy you want Lettuce paired up with. With that said, please review and let me know what you thought.


End file.
